Curse of the Coyotes
by ShadoeKylie
Summary: Tremors - Burt Gummer and the Perfectionites vs the "coyotes"!
1. Prologue

Curse of the Coyotes  
  
By Shadoe Masters  
  
This is Story 2 of "The Great Burt Baiting Saga." These stories center on the characters from Tremors: The Series, and feature Burt, Tyler, and all the gang from Perfection Valley. There are also original characters of my own creation - just so you're warned ahead of time. But please don't let that scare you off. I hope you enjoy them.  
  
While this story is a romance, the people involved are not the most cooperative people in the coupling department. The romantic elements take time to unfold.  
  
Feedback: Please let me know what you think of each story. I love feedback, both good and bad, and the more detailed the better.  
  
Disclaimer: "Tremors" is not owned by me or my affiliates, but by Stampede Entertainment, Universal Studios, and their affiliates. No copyright infringement is intended - just some good, clean (well, mostly) fun!  
  
E-mail: shadoemagic@aol.com  
  
Thanks to my beta readers: LadyNRA, ActionBurt 


	2. Part 1

**Curse of the Coyotes  
Part 1**

Perfection, Nevada, 5/27/2003 

At a flash of light, Nancy looked out the front window of Chang's Market. "Uh-oh. Now we're in for it." 

Jodi joined her at the window. She groaned. "Well, it had to happen sooner or later." 

The object of their concern strutted through the Market's front door and stood inspecting his surroundings a moment before peeling off his sunglasses. He was a big man; not tall, but round, and with a self-important, officious air about him. 

"Well, where is she?" he demanded of the room in general. 

"Good morning, Twitchell," Jodi said with a smile. 

"Morning," he rumbled reluctantly. "Her paperwork filled out?" 

The last was for Nancy, who came around the corner with a sheaf of papers emblazoned with "Residency Permit Application" across the top. "They're done," she said, "but I don't see why she needs them. She's only here for a visit." 

"Of unspecified duration," he corrected. "I don't see why you people think this is some kind of boom town out here in the desert. Why not just invite _all_ your friends and family? Have 'em bring the kids." He moved to the counter and took one of the donuts from the display, then turned expectantly to Nancy as he all but snatched the papers from her. "Well? And don't give me any more excuses. Where is she?" 

"I presume you're talking about me," a voice said from the doorway to the back of the store. 

The government man turned to see a young blond woman leaning with her back against the doorway. She wore light fabric pants that clung to all her curves, and followed the lines of her legs from hip to ankle. Her low-cut blouse was the kind of sheer that made a man think he could see through it even though he couldn't, and just midriff-bearing enough that he could catch the flash of jewelry above her bellybutton. She smiled at him. 

He smiled back, forgotten donut halfway to his mouth. 

Nancy rolled her eyes at Jodi and the two shared a smile. Then she hurried toward the back of the store, pausing in front of the blond only long enough to say, "Be nice." Emphatically. 

"Always," the younger woman replied and returned her attention to the man. 

He stepped forward, hand outstretched - until he realized the donut was still in it. He discarded it on the nearest table and extended his hand again. "Deputy W.D. Twitchell," he said, "Department of the Interior." 

She took his hand and held it a little too long, flashing him a smile. "Kylie Callahan, Prospective Resident." 

He took a step toward one of the small tables in front of the counter. "Why don't we sit down and discuss these?" he said. 

She didn't follow. 

"I'm sorry," she said, obviously at a loss. "I've had a bit of an accident. You see,I was..." She waved off her explanation. "But you know all about that, don't you?" 

She referred, of course, to the graboid attack that took place when she entered Perfection Valley for the first time almost two weeks before. He'd expected to interrogate her the next day, but had been told she was "still recovering from her ordeal." For the next several days she refused to see him. She'd told Nancy she "wasn't nearly pretty enough to manage a government functionary" with her head all bumpy, her hands swathed in bandages, and her left leg swollen and bruised. Nancy had told him she was a gentle-souled young girl who was having a hard time coping with her ordeal. 

"What the hell is this 'gentle soul' doing in a place like Perfection?" he'd wanted to know. 

She held out a hand and smiled again. "I'll need a little help," she said, the note of apology clear in her voice. 

"Oh sure, sure," he said, hurrying to her side. He held out an arm and she leaned heavily against it as he escorted her to the nearest table where they sat down. 

He leafed through the pages of the application while she leaned forward and studied him intently. 

"It's not, um, completely filled out," he said, when he'd gotten to the last page. 

"Do you really need _all_ that information just for a little visit?" She looked down at her form. "Don't you think some of that stuff is a little... personal?" 

"Well, _I_ wouldn't need--" he blustered. "But you know the Department of the Interior..." 

"Actually, no, I don't," she said, looking interested. "I can guess it doesn't have anything to do with interior decorating, though." She laughed. "Not with agents like you." She leaned a little closer, her eyes quickly sliding left and right. "What's it like, being a Secret Agent with the government?" 

He sat a little straighter. "I'm not really a Secret-- Well, working for the government is important work." 

She nodded emphatically. "You must be such a _busy_ man." She reached out to lay her fingers on his hand. "Oh, and I'm _so_ sorry for my silly attack of nerves. We should have met before. I didn't mean to hold up your work..." 

At the counter, Jodi shook her head. 

She looked up when Burt walked in and stood glaring at Twitchell, then hurried to the end of the counter and quickly motioned him over. 

"What's _he_ doing here?" Burt demanded. 

"He's going over Kylie's Residency Permit," Jodi replied, putting a cup of coffee in front of him. 

"I thought he did that last week." 

"He was going to turn it down, so Kylie said to stall him and she'd handle it." 

"How's she going to change his mind?" Burt asked. "Once the government makes up its mind, there's no--" 

"She doesn't have to convince the government, Burt," Nancy said in a low voice as she came to stand next to him at the counter. "She just has to convince Twitchell." 

"And how is she going to do that?" Burt asked, after a sip of coffee. "Twitchell never changes his mind unless you bribe him with something." 

Nancy stared at him a moment, then looked to Jodi for support. She shrugged. 

"She _is_ bribing him with something, Burt," Nancy explained at last. 

Burt frowned. "With what?" 

She sighed. "She's a very pretty girl, Burt. She's using her... smile." 

Burt gave her a puzzled frown and looked to Jodi for help. She just nodded. 

Then realization dawned. "You're both crazy!" Burt scoffed. "You're telling me she expects to change his mind by-- by flirting with him?" he asked in patent disbelief. They nodded. "And you believe this will work?" They nodded again. "That's crazy." 

Nancy shrugged and half turned, inviting him to look at the pair at the table. Twitchell was laughing at something Kylie had just said while he folded up the sheaf of papers he held and slipped them into his pocket. Then both leaned toward each other, whispered for a few minutes, and laughed again. "Looks like it's working to me," she commented smugly. 

Burt snorted his skepticism and looked to Jodi for support. 

"Whatever works," she said with a shrug. 

He shook his head and sipped his coffee until Twitchell approached. 

"Gummer," he said, looking the taller man up and down. He didn't seem to like what he found. 

"Twitchell," Burt replied, equally friendly. 

Twitchell turned to Nancy. "I'll be bringing her permit out sometime this week." He glanced at Burt then back to Nancy. "See that she doesn't get into any more trouble, will you?" 

He walked out of the store while Burt watched him, the astonishment clear on his face. 

Nancy and Jodi giggled. 

"How do you _do_ that?" Nancy asked as she and Jodi migrated to her end of the counter. Burt picked up his coffee and went to Kylie's table. 

"Good morning Doctor Burt," Kylie said as he sat and held out his hands, giving her greeting little attention. She slipped her hands into his, palm up. Then answered Nancy while he examined her healing injuries. 

"It's easy." She ticked off the points on the fingers of the hand Burt wasn't currently inspecting. "Listen, agree, flatter, support and, above all, be sincere." 

She laughed at Burt's dubious expression. "The value of a convent education," she explained. 

Burt grabbed the hand she was gesturing with and frowned. "You think you can get anything you want with your looks?" 

"Workin' out okay for me so far," Kylie confirmed with a smile. 

He glared at her. "Well don't try it on me." 

She smiled innocently at him. "Oh no, Doctor Burt." 

He ignored the grin she threw the other two women and returned his attention to her hands. "That last sliver seems to have worked its way out of your thumb. They're almost completely healed," he pronounced. "You probably won't have any scars by the end of next month." 

Kylie smiled, then turned to Nancy and Jodi. "Besides, he was just yanking your chain about turning it down in the first place. I think you'd find he's really a very nice man, if you give him a chance." 

Burt snorted. 

"He _is_." 

"To _you_, maybe," Nancy pointed out. "Not the rest of us mere mortals." 

"You can like anyone if you set your mind to it," Kylie responded. 

"Sounds like a quote," Nancy said. "Nuns teach you that too?" 

"Of course." 

Burt shook his head at the conversation and let go of her hands. "How's your leg feeling?" 

She stretched it out and bent the knee a few times. "Just fine. Hardly even have a limp anymore." 

"You wouldn't have a limp at all if you'd just stay off it," he said sternly. 

"Yes sir, Doctor Burt." Her tone was meek, but Burt caught the twinkle of mischief in her eyes. 

His eyes turned grimly skeptical. 

"Don't give me That Look of yours, Burt. I said I'd stay off it." 

"And five minutes after I leave, you'll be wandering around town again. Just like the last time." 

"But I really mean it this time. I'll sit right here," she promised. 

He didn't look convinced. 

She put her foot in the chair opposite. "I'll keep it elevated, even. I promise." 

He sighed, but still gave her That Look again. "See that you do." 

"Oh! Burt! Come here. Quick." Nancy was gesturing for Burt to join her at the counter. 

Her rolled his eyes, but reluctantly went to lean next to her. "What is it?" he asked, resigned to listening to one of her crazy theories. 

Nancy pointed toward the window. 

Tyler Reed was walking across the street from his Graboid Adventures building, probably for breakfast. He looked the same as he always did: t-shirt, jeans, Vegas 51's cap, and boots. 

"Something wrong with him?" Burt asked. 

She shook her head. "I wanted to give Tyler a hand," she said with a smile. 

Burt looked from Nancy, to Tyler, then back again. "With what?" 

"With Kylie." 

He only frowned at her. 

"Some time alone. You know, so he can get her to go out with him." She sighed. "Come on, Burt, you must have noticed. He's been after her since she arrived." 

Tyler came in then, said a quick "Hey Burt. Nancy, Jodi," and made a beeline to Kylie's table, where he sat in the chair Burt had recently vacated. "Hey midget," he said with a warmer voice and a smile. 

Kylie leaned back in her chair and grinned. "Hey cowboy." 

Burt turned away. "No, I hadn't noticed." He turned to lean on the counter and reach for his coffee but realized he'd left it at the table. 

"Of course," Nancy complained. "If it doesn't involve a gun or explosives, you're not interested." 

"That's right." 

Jodi scooted around the counter and put Kylie's breakfast and a cup of black coffee in front of her. The girl looked up long enough to thank Jodi then went back to sparring with Tyler. 

Nancy leaned forward when Jodi came back to the counter. "Tyler having any luck?" 

"Who can tell?" Jodi said. "They were just trading insults from what I could hear." 

"That's how they do it these days," Nancy said with a knowing grin. 

"Why won't she go out with him, did she say anything to you?" 

Nancy shook her head. "Who knows? She keeps saying she's 'not ready yet'. I don't know what she's talking about, though. She broke up with her last boyfriend almost six months ago, I think. How 'ready' do you have to be when you're twenty-five?" 

"She's twenty-five?" Jodi asked. "I thought she was about eighteen." 

"She looks younger," Nancy agreed. "I think it's her height." She watched the couple at the table a minute, a calculating light in her eyes. "We've got to get those two together. I think we should--" 

"I think you should mind your own business," Burt said. He'd been the unhappy recipient of Nancy's matchmaking efforts more than once in the past. "If she doesn't want to date him, who are you to decide she should?" 

"Burt, try to be a little romantic." 

He cocked an eyebrow at her. 

"But wouldn't they make a cute couple?" 

He looked over his shoulder at them. Tyler's dark head leaned toward her blond one as he swiped a piece of toast off her plate. She stabbed at him with her fork and giggled. Looked like Tyler was doing just fine without Nancy's help. "Make a fine looking couple," he admitted, reaching for his nonexistent coffee. "Can I get a cup of coffee here?" he complained. 

"See?" Nancy said. 

"_If_ she wants things to go that way. They don't need your interference." 

"But, she's twenty-five. How does she know what she wants? All I'm saying is--" 

Rosalita burst through the door then, halting all the conversation in the room. And sparing Burt more of Nancy's cockamamie speculation. 

"Burt!" Rosalita said as soon as her eyes zeroed in on him. "You have to come out to the ranch! Something is killing my cattle. This is the third one! You need to do something!" 

Burt stood, suddenly alert. "El Blanco?" he asked. 

She shook her head. "I said 'something', Burt. Don't you think I know what it looks like when El Blanco comes around? There were no holes, no broken up ground. Just bones. Harlowe says it looks like a coyote. He found tracks." 

Burt shook his head. "A coyote couldn't take down a full-sized cow." He thought a moment but shook his head. "We don't have anything in the area but El Blanco that could take down one of those cows." He shook his head. "I'll have to check it out." He turned to Tyler. "Come on, Tyler. We have a coyote to investigate." 

Tyler looked up. "Coyote?" he said, confused. He looked to Kylie and Burt and back to Kylie. "I haven't even finished my coffee." He took a quick sip before hurrying after Burt and grimaced. "Cold anyway." 


	3. Part 2

**Curse of the Coyotes  
Part 2**

Burt's Power Wagon slid to a stop near the site of the two latest bovine victim's remains. Burt and Tyler climbed out of the cab, Burt stopping only long enough to grab his H&H mag rifle out of the back. 

Burt surveyed the surrounding area carefully. "There's Harlowe's footprints," he pointed out to the younger man. "And Rosalita's." Then he turned to the multitude of animal tracks. "Those are coyote tracks... There's something strange about them, though. I just... can't put my finger on it." He sat on his heels to get a closer look. 

They didn't make any more sense from there. He shook his head. 

"They sure picked it clean," Tyler pointed out. 

Burt nodded. "That bothers me. Coyotes aren't usually this neat." 

"Sure were a lot of them, though." The area was covered with tracks. 

"That's strange too. Coyotes don't run in packs this large." Burt surveyed the area, kneeling to get a closer look here and there. He finally came to a stop some yards away. "They took down the animal here," he said. "You can see how it struggled, tried to get away. It looks like... they swarmed it." He examined the area in ever-widening circles, and finally called Tyler over at one end of the field. "Over here!" 

Tyler caught up to him as he mounted a gentle rise. 

"Look here," Burt pointed out. "See the tracks?" 

Tyler glanced down. "Looks like coyote tracks to me." 

Burt shook his head, following the trail. "But they're all in a straight line. No deviation. Coyotes don't travel like that, they move side by side. If their prey is larger than they are, they'll surround it, but these... It looks like they stood in line to attack the cow, one by one." He came to a stop and sat on his heels when the tracks turned sharply, all of them, to the west. He looked up to Tyler. "Something's wrong." 

He stood up and started walking. "Let's see where these lead." 

They followed the trail until it intersected with other trails, all of them following a single line. "I don't like this," Burt declared. 

Continuing, they came across several other trails, until all of them cumulated in a cave entrance. 

Tyler started to approach the cave. 

"Stand fast," Burt said, eying the cave suspiciously. 

"Come on, Burt." 

The older man shook his head. "I don't think so. Something's wrong with this. I'm not sure what it is, but I think I want some more firepower before we go in there." He turned and started back the way they'd come. "Let's go back to the truck." 

"You've got a rifle," Tyler complained, following. 

"There could be sinkholes, low ceilings. We'll need light too." 

~~~

Burt stopped the truck close - but not too close - to the cave. "Whatever's in there, we don't want to disturb it prematurely." He reached in the back and pulled out the HKG3, then handed an M-16 over to Tyler with a flashlight. He affixed the LED head lamp over his hat. Thus armed, they crept up to the cave. 

At first, there was nothing, just an empty cave. Though there were piles of fur scattered along the edges, there was no sign of the animals they'd pursued. "Remember," Burt cautioned. "These... coyotes took down a full sized cow. Be careful." 

Tyler rolled his eyes. "I was there, Burt. I saw the cow." 

They proceeded further into the cave and came to another chamber with several more openings leading from it. One side of the chamber was what looked like a larger pile of fur. It stirred. 

"I'll be damned. He was right. They _are_ coyotes," Burt whispered, making out heads and legs in the pile. "Five or six, maybe." He panned the light over the pile, looking for details. 

"Something not right about those coyotes," Tyler pointed out. 

Burt nodded, making the light on his head send crazy shadows around the room. He looked at Tyler and jerked his head toward the entrance. "Let's get out of here." 

Slowly, they backed away. Just as they were about to round the corner to the first chamber, one of the heads lifted. It didn't make a sound, as Burt expected it to. Instead, it's ears pricked up and it turned an oddly-blunted snout toward the rest of the pile. Then there were six sets of eyes peering in their direction. 

That's when Burt saw the first problem. "Those aren't ears," he said, pushing Tyler out of the cave. "They're antenna." 

Before they'd reached the entrance, the coyotes were pouring out of the inner chamber, after them. Burt leveled his gun and fired, taking out the lead animal. Its body slammed into the one behind it, and the three or four following that one fell on them both. The rest just detoured over or around the pile. 

Tyler fired twice from the hip, killing one and shooting one leg off another, but it kept moving. 

Then they both fired once more and ran like hell. 

"You drive!" Burt shouted, turning quickly to fire twice. He got two more, but by then there were a dozen swarming out of the cave. 

They reached the truck, Tyler fired it up and took off, but they weren't out of the woods yet. Two of the animals leaped on the back of the truck. That's when Burt finally got a good look at them and figured out what had been bothering him all along. 

Tyler took a turn and they lost one, but the other kept coming. Out of ammo, Burt took up Tyler's discarded M-16 and shot it point blank. 

"There's gotta be two dozen of those things!" Tyler shouted, checking their status in the rear view mirror. 

"And they've all got six legs," Burt pointed out grimly. 


	4. Part 3

**Curse of the Coyotes  
Part 3**

Back at Chang's, Jodi brought another stack of Graboid mugs out and set them on the shelves. Nancy had just pounced on a spider and killed it with a "Graboids Happen" baseball cap. Jodi left the mugs and took the hat out of Nancy's hand. The older woman had her eye on another spider, just disappearing under the counter. "Will you leave my hats out of your eternal struggle against the spiders? It's not like you can kill them _all_." 

Nancy shuddered and wiped up the spider with a tissue and took it outside to the trash. 

Jodi watched Kylie and Rosalita laughing where they sat at the tables at the other end of the store. "What's that all about?" she asked Nancy when she came back to the counter. 

Nancy glanced across the store at the two girls. "They're playing the 'what I miss about the city' game." 

"Again?" 

Nancy nodded, then snatched the "Graboids Happen" hat out of Jodi's hand for another round of Woman vs. Spider. 

"I'm putting that hat on your bill," Jodi told her. 

"Ice cream!" Kylie suggested. 

"Night clubs!" Rosalita countered. 

"DVD rentals!" 

"Pretty boys!" 

"Tyler's pretty," Kylie teased. 

Rosalita gave her a wry look. "He's not, you know, 'pretty,' really. More... _grrrow_." 

Both girls laughed. 

"Oh I have one: wearing pretty clothes," Rosalita suggested. 

"Having my nails done," Kylie countered. "And my hair styled. And a day spa!" 

"Oh, you have got it bad, girl," Rosalita sympathized. 

Burt and Tyler burst through the door. The game was over for the day. 

"We've got a problem," Burt announced. Everyone gathered around the two. Burt frowned at Kylie until she boosted herself onto the stool next to him at the counter. 

"They were coyotes, all right," Tyler told Rosalita. "But not like normal coyotes. They had antenna and six legs!" 

"Looks like Mixmaster at work again," Jodi suggested. 

"Exactly," Burt confirmed. 

Kylie frowned at them. "Mixmaster?" 

"Mixmaster is a diabolical secret government concoction which mingles any non-human DNA it can find, creating strange creatures never meant to walk this earth," Burt explained, then looked at Nancy. "Don't you tell her _anything_?" 

"So, you're saying that they could be coyotes and... something else too?" Kylie asked. 

"Affirmative," he said. "At least they've got coyote DNA, that's certain. The tracks, the spoor, that all matches." 

"Should we call Cletus in?" Nancy asked. 

"Already thought of that," Burt said, "We went by his place on the way in. He wasn't there." 

"Can't we just treat them like regular coyotes?" She persisted. 

Burt shook his head. "They look like coyotes, mostly, but they don't act like coyotes. If we can't determine what's mixed in with the coyote DNA, we won't know how to kill them. They could be resistant to standard methods. There were dozens of them at the cave we found. There could be more. We could study their behavior--" 

Rosalita protested. "And they'll keep eating my cattle? Not an option, Burt." 

He nodded. "That would be too dangerous. If they're taking out your cattle, all of us are in danger." Burt pulled his hat off, and slid it back on, agitated. He went into lecture mode. "Let's look at what we know. Fact: They have antenna instead of ears. Fact: They have six legs, not four." 

"Spiders," Nancy said. 

"Will you get your mind off the spiders!" Jodi said. 

"Negative," Burt said. "Spiders have eight legs. Fact: It looks like they attack in a swarm." 

"Wasps!" Rosalita suggested. 

"But wouldn't they have wings?" Tyler asked. 

"They might or might not. You never know with Mixmaster," Burt told him. "We'll consider that a possibility." 

"And they're fast," Tyler added. 

Burt shook his head. "No faster than the average coyote, but they're stronger. I don't think a coyote could have jumped on my Power Wagon. Not and held on like these did." He rubbed his chin. "Fact: They didn't eat the cow where they killed it, just took the flesh away. Fact: Coyotes will gnaw the bones of their prey. This was just picked clean, the bones left to rot in the sun." 

"Eew," Jodi said. "Thanks for the nightmares, Burt." 

Burt frowned at her, but continued. "Fact: They travel in straight line. Coyotes move more side-by-side." 

"Ants!" Kylie suggested. 

They all turned to her. 

"Ants don't swarm," Burt pointed out slowly, his mind already on the possibility. 

"Sure they do," Kylie said. "Toss a french fry on the ground and see how fast they swarm." 

Burt pursed his lips, considering. "It's possible." 

Kylie ticked the points off on her fingers. "Ants have six legs, a jointed carapace, they use antenna to communicate with each other, they'll attack in a swarm if they come across prey that's not already dead, they don't eat bones, and they take all their food back to the nest. _And_, they always travel in a straight line because that's how they leave a trail for each other. No ant is ever lost!" 

"How do you know so much about ants?" Tyler asked. 

"I used to be fascinated with them when I was little." 

Tyler looked down at her and where she sat next to him, feet dangling, then up to Burt on her other side. "You're still little." 

"And you're a bit too hairy to be natural, Cowboy," she said poking an elbow in his stomach. "Maybe we should get this Cletus to see what all _your_ DNA is mixed with." 

"Let's get back on track, shall we?" Burt said, breaking in on the byplay. "Ants are a very real possibility," he continued. "There were several mounds of dirt piled up around the entrance to that cave. Not nearly as much as there would be for a coyote-sized ant colony, but some. They may be digging like ants would, but they're definitely also making use of existing cave systems as coyotes would. That could work in our favor." 

Everyone watched him, while he mentally considered and discarded possibilities. "One thing about ants - where there's one, there's many." He looked at the gun he carried. "We'll need more ammo. There had to be two or three dozen in that cave." 

"How many could there be?" Tyler asked, turning to Kylie. 

Her eyes went wide. "How should _I_ know?" 

"You're the new ant expert." 

She looked up at Burt, who was watching her expectantly too. "Well, a queen ant lays hundreds of eggs." 

Tyler groaned. "How are we going to stop hundreds of these things?" 

"I don't think I have enough ammo," Burt commented. 

Tyler and Burt turned again to Kylie. 

Her mouth opened in an "O" of resentment before she frowned in thought. "I used to drown them..." 

Burt sighed, exasperated. "May I remind you that this is the desert?" 

"I don't kill things," Kylie said. "_You're_ the monster guy." 

"We used to blow 'em up," Tyler said. Everyone turned to him. "When we found a big mound of them. Just pour some gasoline in the holes, wait a few minutes, then light it off. Makes for a hell of an explosion." 

"We could use explosives on that cave..." Burt mused. 

"Gotta watch them when they come steaming out the holes you didn't fill with gas, though," Tyler pointed out. 

"There could be dozens of entrances," Burt agreed. He wasn't happy. 

~~~

Later, they'd gathered around Burt where he sat at one of the tables drawing lines on a map. "We'll need to find all the entrances," he was saying. "We'll team up. Each team will take one load of explosives. When you find an entrance to the colony, destroy it. Once we have them trapped, we can take them out." 

"Take them out with what?" Nancy asked. 

He looked at her. "You let me worry about that." 

Harlowe walked in, carrying a box. "I've got everything you asked for," he told Burt. 

Burt nodded and looked to Jodi. "You get your list?" 

She nodded. "Mothballs, salt, all the rest... It's all right here." She indicated the jumble of contents on the counter. 

"Good," he said. "Now we'll have a class in making homemade explosives." 

~~~

Later, they were ready. Four boxes of homemade bombs sat on the table nearest the door, and Burt was handing out maps. "Harlowe, you take Rosalita in your truck. Take the south quadrant." 

Nancy took a map from him. "Kylie and I can take my van." 

Burt frowned at her. "And put you two new age nuts in the same place? I think not. Besides, your van won't make it over the terrain." He took the map from her and handed it to Jodi, then gave Nancy a box. "Take Jodi's truck. I trust you have a lighter?" 

He ignored her protests and turned to Tyler. "Take Kylie." He handed a map to him. "And keep an eye on her." 

"She'll be _in_ the jeep Burt," Tyler griped. 

"Remember people," Burt announced. "Those are bombs you're carrying. Treat them gently. Stay in your vehicles. These things can move fast, and they're fierce, so you won't get more than one chance to make a mistake. Once we get the entrances closed, we'll meet back here." 

"What are you going to be doing?" Nancy asked. 

Burt picked up the last box, heavier than the others. "I have a little surprise I'll be setting up for them." 

Everyone filled out, Kylie in the rear. Burt stopped her at the door. "Stay _in_ the car," he told her. 

Her eyes widened. "I _heard_ you." 


	5. Part 4

**Curse of the Coyotes  
Part 4**

"You've got the lighter, right?" Tyler asked. 

Kylie patted the back pocket of her jeans while scanning the passing scenery through binoculars. "Right here. Tested it, too." She looked at him. "You've got a spare?" 

He nodded. 

Kylie went back to looking for caves. 

"So what brings you to Perfection anyway?" Tyler asked. 

She kept looking through the binoculars. "I told you, I'm visiting Nancy." 

"People don't just come to Perfection for a visit," Tyler insisted. "Besides, you and Nancy don't seem like much of a fit." 

She lowered the binoculars and looked at him, head cocked to one side. "Why? Because we're not the same age?" 

Tyler shrugged. His turn to scan the scenery. "Just seems to me you're an LA girl and she's... Well, Nancy." 

Kylie resorted to the binoculars again. "I needed a break from LA. I met Nancy last year at a retreat and we, you know, clicked. She said she lived in a secluded, peaceful valley and I wanted to visit. That's all." 

"So you decided to visit downtown graboid-ville to get away from the dangers of the city." 

Kylie grinned at his sarcasm. "Nancy didn't mention the graboids last year at the retreat." 

"How could you not already _know_ about graboids? They've been all over the news for the past ten years." 

Kylie laughed. "They were big news here ten years ago - while I was attending a school where they didn't think American tabloid press was sufficiently important to inform us about. They weren't a big deal when I got back, so..." She shrugged. 

He took a turn and topped a rise then turned to her. "Just where did you go to school?" 

"In Europe, mostly. Secluded little convent boarding schools." 

"Oh... Convent schools, huh?" Tyler said with a leer. 

"And I've heard all the comments there are about Catholic girls, so just spare me, okay?" 

Tyler nodded, but the grin on his face made clear that he'd heard a lot of those rumors too. "Still sounds to me like you're hiding out," Tyler probed. 

She thought a moment, peering through the binoculars. "Maybe I am," she said at last. "Had a very bad breakup a while back and he's been bothering me ever since. It just seems... quieter here." 

Tyler frowned. "What'd he do, start stalking you?" 

Kylie nodded. "That, and burned down my store." Her tone was offhand, but her eyes looked troubled. 

Tyler pulled the Jeep to a halt. "He burned down your store?" 

She nodded. "Yup, made the whole place crispy critters. And poor little me stuck in my apartment in the back." She shrugged. "Thought it was time to play splitsville until he bought a clue." She looked through the binoculars again. "What's over there?" She pointed to a shadowed area at the foot of the hill and Tyler put the jeep into gear. 

"So you bought the Range Rover with the insurance money, packed up what was left from the fire, and headed here to hide?" 

"Something like that," she replied. 

"But--" 

"Look!" Kylie cried. "It's a cave!" She pointed. "That's a cave, isn't it?" 

Tyler straightened. "That's a cave," he confirmed. "Now you just get one of those bombs out of the box there and I'll tell you when to light it. Then just throw it in as I drive by." 

He circled the jeep around for a pass in front of the cave while Kylie gingerly took hold of one of the bombs they'd made from the box at her feet. She got the lighter ready at the end of the fuse and waited. 

"Okay, light it now!" 

She flicked the lighter. 

Nothing happened. 

She tried again. 

It lit the second time and she held the flame to the fuse. The wind blew it out. 

"Hold it down there, out of the wind," Tyler said. 

The lighter failed to catch again. 

"We're going to have to go by pretty fast. Get that thing lit _now_, Kylie." 

She heard the urgency in his voice and looked up. There were two animals at the cave entrance. They looked like coyotes, but... not. 

Kylie flicked the lighter again and held it to the fuse. She smiled when it caught and turned to sight on the cave. 

The jeep hit a bump. The bomb fell. 

Right into the box with the other bombs. 

Kylie screamed and scrambled up onto the seat. 

Tyler acted fast. He leaned over and grabbed the lit bomb, then tossed it into the cave as they drove by. The coyote ants streamed out of the opening and pursued. 

"Another one's lit!" Kylie screamed. She grabbed first one and then another of the bombs and tossed them out of the truck, trying to find the one that was lit. 

"Get 'em out of here!" Tyler shouted, grabbing bombs from the box and tossing them out the side of the jeep, while piloting a swerving course over the landscape. 

Kylie found the lit one at last and tossed it behind them. "Drive!" she cried. She'd gotten a glance behind them. 

He drove. 

Not fast enough. The bomb Tyler had thrown into the cave went off and sealed the cave all right, but the other one was too close. It lifted the back wheels off the ground when it blew. The jeep slewed to a halt. 

Rocks, dirt, and coyote body parts rained down on them. 

"Eeew, eew, eeew!" Kylie cried, cowering in the seat as bloody viscera coated her. "God! I need a shower. Like, _now_!" 

Tyler ignored her and grabbed the shotgun behind the seat. The bombs hadn't got all the coyotes. 

He fired once, twice, again. The last one dodged, leaped on the back of the jeep. He put the muzzle of the shotgun against its head and fired. 

Tyler leaned the shotgun against his side, took off his hat and ran a hand through his hair. Then he looked down at Kylie. 

"Let me explain about bombs..." 

~~~

Burt was having a bit more luck. 

After sealing no less than nine minor caves, he climbed to the ground atop what he believed to be the primary entrance and exit to the colony. His theory that they were using mostly the existing cave network proved true, and had worked in their favor. Crumbling rock, sinkholes and other natural openings provided him alternate access to most of the caves. This one, he believed, was conveniently located above what could possibly be the main chamber. 

From the items Harlowe and Jodi had provided, plus some timer charges from his place, he'd assembled several gas bombs. They consisted of two chambers separating chemicals that, when combined, produced a highly flamable gas. He'd attached a crude detonator that would break the chambers and allow the chemicals to mix when he pressed the detonators' radio control. When all were in place throughout the colony and the exits sealed, he'd set off the detonators. The gas was heavy enough to stay near the ground, where the coyote/ants would be, but would spread quickly enough to permeate most of the system. One bomb, fired through the main entrance, should create a chain reaction throughout the entire cave system, wiping out all the coyotes in one swift move. 

"Should" was not something Burt decided to rely on. With each gas bomb, he carefully included another timed charge that would ignite the gas. He could set these off with a separate control. 

So far, his luck had held and he hadn't needed to actually enter any of the caves to deploy his little surprises. He'd been lucky enough to find sinkholes or broken rock above the colony chambers. 

This time, the sinkhole found him. 

Before he knew what was happening, he found himself falling through loose dirt and scrub. A short period of freefall was followed by a sudden ingnoble stop. 

He shook his head to clear it, then stilled to listen. There was a restless churning around him. He scrambled for the small flashlight he always kept in his vest pocket for emergencies and flicked it on. 

His eyes went wide as his worst fear was realized: he was surrounded by dozens of the hell-spawned unnatural creatures. They were eerily silent, watching him, considering. But he knew they saw him as their next meal. 

Instantly, his hand lashed out, searching for his dropped rifle. 

As the nearest of the creatures took a hesitant step toward him, his questing hand landed on the stock on of the HK. He pulled it toward him, instinctively firing as the coyote drew near. That may have been a mistake - the blood of their compatriot seemed to set them off. While some immediately attacked their fallen comrade, others converged on him as he leaped to his feet and centered on his escape route: a dim source of light barely seen through the nearest opening. 

That the opening was beyond several of the creatures was, somehow, inevitible. 

He fired into them, clearing a path, all the while hoping the light was from an exit, rather than one of the many sinkholes he'd discovered himself. He mowed down a dozen or more of them before he finally made it through the chaos to the opening. 

Then one of them had him, pinning his right arm in a silent snarl. The HK fell in the struggle and he was left unarmed. Swiftly, he reached for the Bushmaster knife at his side and jammed it into the creature's side. It failed to penetrate far due to some kind of rubbery exoskeleton. Burt drew back the knife and drew it backhand across the creature's throat. It fell away in a spray of blood. 

It's fellows were on it in a heartbeat, allowing Burt to scoop up the rifle and run, slaming the knife home in its sheath. 

He fired again and again, quickly learning that he could shoot one and distract a half dozen, to save his ammo. Still, he feared his efforts were futile - there were so many! Then he rounded a curve and saw the exit he sought come into view he gained hope and a corresponding burst of speed. 

Then his luck ran out again. 

The HK clicked empty and he had no time to reload while the creatures were upon him. He slammed the nearest on the head with the butt of the rifle, then spun to deliver two more quick blows. Hoping for a quick dash to the entrance, he tripped over one and slid, his hand coming to rest upon one of the gas bombs he'd deployed earlier. 

He paused there only long enough to draw his knife and use the handle to crack open the chambers. Then he was on his feet again, running for escape, followed by dozens of the creatures. 

At the entrance, he paused, tossed aside the rifle, and drew his faithful Desert Eagle. Taking careful aim, he fired. 

He didn't take the time to see if his shot to the detonator had caused the desired spark - he just dove for cover behind one of the dirt piles to the side of the entrance. 

A fireball boosted him over the hurdle. 

Two six-legged fireballs managed to stagger out and Burt twisted, knelt, and aimed the Eagle for him, but both collapsed before they reached him. He aimed, tense and ready, for any other escapees, but none came. 

At last, as the fire raged, he collapsed to his back, spent and gasping. 


	6. Part 5

**Curse of the Coyotes  
Part 5**

Burt strode into Chang's with his usual swagger, more or less. He surveyed the inhabitants. "All present and accounted for," he prounced. "Good." He frowned down at Kylie, combing out her wet hair. "Why are you all wet?" 

"I took a shower," she groused. "What happened to you? You're not your usual immaculate self." 

He brushed off a bit more of the dirt and soot that still coated him from head to toe. "A slight miscalculation," he said. 

"Must have been a disaster," Nancy commented, familiar with Burt's penchant for understatement. 

Burt ignored her and moved on. "Are all the tunnel entrances sealed?" 

"Every one we could find," Harlowe pronounced. "I think we got them all." 

"Good." Burt moved further into the store, zeroing in on the coffee cup Jodi was setting on the counter for him. "Then we're ready. Tyler." He turned to the younger man. "We've got one last task and we should take out these government-spawned demons." 

He gulped down the coffee and the two men went for the door. Before Tyler could exit, Burt noticed his wet hair too, then Kylie eying him nervously. He looked suspiciously from Tyler to Kylie and back again. "She stay in the vehicle?" he asked. 

Tyler and Kylie shared a look. "Mostly," he said. 

~~~

Burt and Tyler crept up to the crest of the ridge and looked at the main entrance to the colony. It was considerably wider than when they came across it originally, due to Burt's earlier explosion. Coyotes were busily rolling chunks of dirt and debris out. 

"If you've got the timers, why can't we just seal this cave up too?" Tyler asked. 

Burt glanced at him. "The entrance is too big. If I tried to seal it again, it would just stir them up and they'd be on us before we could make any progress. Too many outside the cave now." 

"Lot of activity there, Burt," Tyler said. "Can you make out how many are outside the cave?" 

Looking through the binoculars, Burt shook his head. "Hard to tell. They keep moving and it's getting dark. Maybe a dozen or so. But there's more coming out all the time." 

"Coming on to night. It's their coyote side getting active." 

Burt nodded. "But we have something for them." He patted the radio control he'd set next to him when they came over the ridge. He had set it off as soon as he'd assessed the situation. "It shouldn't take more than five minutes," he said. 

They waited. 

"Burt, there are an awful lot of them coming out now. Shouldn't we--" 

"Negative. We need the gas to get to as many chambers as possible. A few more minutes should do it..." 

Lines of coyotes started heading off in different directions. One line came toward them. 

"Burt..." 

Burt came to a kneeling position. "Pick off any that get too far from the entrance, but don't waste ammo on the rest." He set the radio control near him. "And when I tell you to hit the dirt--" 

"I know, dive!" 

Burt grinned a particularly nasty grin. "You take the right, I'll take the left. Aim at targets of opportunity in the middle." 

Both men leveled their rifles and opened fire. 

Chaos reigned when the lead animals in each line were blown away. It was as if the other animals didn't know where to go. A moment of angry milling, however, settled that question. Several of the lines converged and started in their direction. 

"Burt!" 

"Just a few more--" 

The control emitted a series of short beeps. Burt scooped it up and shouted, "Fire in the hole!" and flicked another switch with his thumb. 

A rumbling started deep inside the ground and grew quickly louder. 

Both men dived behind the ridge, rolling a short way down the hill. 

_BOOM!_

A fireball came out and up from the cave opening and another part of the ceiling fell away. They heard echoes of the explosion around the area. 

"_Whoo-hoo!_" Tyler shouted. 

"We're not out of the woods yet!" Burt bellowed, pointing his rifle at the top of the hill. It was swarming with coyotes. He aimed and fired, taking out the lead animals, but more followed. 

Tyler joined in and soon the night was lit with barrel flash as wave after wave came over the hill and were slaughtered. The two fell back and started eyeing the safety of the truck when finally the last animal went down. 

Carefully, they crept to the top of the hill, finishing off any coyotes on the way. 

The scene below them was from a horror movie. The flames still burned at the entrance. Periodically, an animal would stagger out, its fur on fire, only to crumple with his fellows. 

"Looks like we got 'em, Burt," Tyler said. 

The older man nodded. "Looks like we did." 

Suddenly, something burst out of the cave and soared up into the air, leaving a trail of soot, ash and fur. Both men ducked though whatever it had been was too far away to be a danger to them. 

"What the _hell_ was that?" Tyler shouted. 

"I do not know..." Burt said slowly. He brought the binoculars to his eyes. "I'll be damned..." 

~~~

The door at Chang's slammed open and Burt burst into the room, followed by Tyler. 

"They were flying!" Burt shouted down at Kylie. "You didn't say they could fly!" 

She stared up at him, wide-eyed. "Flying?" she cried. "I didn't know they could fly!" 

"They got away then?" Nancy asked, concerned. 

Burt shook his head. "Just one, I think. But that's enough." 

"Oh no..." Kylie said in a small voice. 

Burt's eyes squewered her. "What?" 

Kylie grimaced. "Only the queen can fly. And only when she... uh... mates..." 

~END~


End file.
